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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2021 - 2022
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | March 1, 2021 12:58 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Representative Craig T. Staats |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | School Mandate Waiver Program |
| In response to appeals from public school leaders across Pennsylvania, in the near future, I plan to introduce legislation intended to provide public schools flexibility and relief from costly and unnecessary mandates by permanently reinstituting a mandate waiver program similar to the highly successful program which operated in this state from 2000 to 2010. School districts are required to comply with hundreds of individual mandates imposed by state law and regulations. Considered separately, many mandates can be defended as implementing important policy objectives or as necessary to enhance the quality of education, health, safety, accountability, and transparency. However, the combined effect of mandates can become a costly and time-consuming burden, allow little to no flexibility for innovation, and may require compliance with archaic and unnecessary processes and measures that make it difficult to operate a system of education that is truly thorough, efficient, and logical. Public school leaders fully supported including the temporary mandate waiver program as part of the emergency coronavirus legislation in Act 13 of 2020 which received unanimous support in the Legislature. However, the waiver provisions in Act 13 were only available for April, May, and June of that year. Public school leaders need a permanent solution that will continue in future years. My legislation will allow public schools in the Commonwealth to apply to the Department of Education for a waiver of many state-imposed mandates to enable the public school to improve its instructional program or operate in a more effective, efficient, or economical manner. The application will require, among other things, supporting data or information regarding the benefits expected to be obtained, and the legislation does not allow waivers for a number of mandates in areas where such waivers do not make sense, such as health and safety, special education, etc. At a time when school districts across the state are facing the many significant impacts brought on by the pandemic, a new mandate waiver program would provide necessary long-term flexibility and cost savings without requiring additional state appropriations. Please join me in co-sponsoring this legislation to give public schools the flexibility to use taxpayer dollars more efficiently and in ways that best meet the needs of their students and communities. |
Introduced as HB1473